The thali — India's version of a sampler platter — is a great way to try several items at once, as with the Yogi thali seen here from Pondicheri.

Robb Walsh

Bánh cuon at Banh Cuon Hoa.

I'm not gonna lie: Finding good eats around Intercontinental Airport (or, if you must, Bush Intercontinental Airport — true Houstonians still say "The Summit," "Transco Tower" and "Intercontinental Airport") is tough. This isn't like eating around Hobby Airport, where you're smack in the middle of the city and interesting dining neighborhoods like south Houston abound.

No. Greenspoint and the areas near Intercontinental are mostly a wasteland of chain restaurants, mediocre hotels filled with exhausted business travelers and one of the city's saddest malls.

That said, it is still possible to eke out some good food in the area. This is Houston, after all. If you can't find at least ten decent restaurants within a ten-mile radius, you're not trying hard enough.

Even more promising is the fact that many of those good, decent restaurants serve some of the city's most iconic cuisines — Tex-Mex, seafood, Vietnamese, Cajun and Southern — so you can direct those sad-sack business travelers to experience a little of Houston while they're in the area. I know from experience: Room service gets real old after a few trips.

10. Waffle House

Go on ahead and hate. I don't care. Waffle House is a beacon of sanity after a long plane ride into an unfamiliar city. Cheese grits and syrup-drenched waffles from this diner chain are one of my favorite indulgences — especially on the road, where the familiarity of the food can afford the same relaxation as a hot bath or a fluffy hotel robe.

9. Pappasito's

Again, keep on hating. Sure, this is a chain restaurant. But it's a Houston chain and a successful one at that. Successful because the Tex-Mex dishes are good and the service is friendly — even if the food itself is overpriced. Your out-of-town guests won't care, though. Pappasito's gives the people what they want: strong margaritas, tender fajitas on fresh flour tortillas, crunchy chips and gooey queso.

Banh Cuon Hoa is the first of two Vietnamese restaurants in the area that are so good, you'll forget about driving down to Chinatown. Like its sister restaurant on Beechnut, Banh Cuon Hoa specializes in banh cuon. These little "rolled cakes" look like softer, looser spring rolls and are wrapped in thick, chewy rice sheets. The snowy sheets can contain shrimp, pork, beef and/or vegetables — depending on what you order — and are best dipped in the sweetly tart nuoc cham sauce that comes with them. Banh Cuon Hoa was recently renovated, too, so it shouldn't startle non-Houstonians nearly as much now.

6. Super Tacos Lucy

If you just can't stomach the idea of eating at a Pappasito's, this cute pink truck is where you can score some legit Mexican food. For a taco truck, the food at Super Tacos Lucy is actually presented quite nicely, and there's even a shaded seating area (shhhhhh). Burritos are a favorite due to sheer size, but I prefer the more delicate pleasures of two hot, griddled corn tortillas filled with juicy fajita beef and topped with a scatter of raw white onions.

5. Pho Hu Tieu Nam Vang

As with Banh Cuon Hoa, the idea at Pho Hu Tieu Nam Vang is to stick with the pho. (This is generally the rule at all Vietnamese restaurants, you've probably learned by now; order what's in the name.) But you'll also want to give the hu tieu Nam Vang a try — yes, that's the name of a dish, too! Think of it as the Khmer version of pho. It's made with pork stock and originally featured only pork (along with garlic and other spices) until Cambodians took the noodle soup with them to Vietnam. There the southern Vietnamese adapted the dish to include shrimp, squid and other Viet ingredients. The result is a hybrid soup that's named for Phnom Penh (Nam Vang means Phnom Penh in Vietnamese) but now has a distinctly Vietnamese flavor ­profile.

4. Maine-ly Sandwiches

All that stuff I wrote about ra-ra-Houston? Forget that for one moment, because you're going to be all ra-ra-Maine and ra-ra-lobster after eating at Maine-ly Sandwiches. Houston doesn't really have lobster rolls because we don't have lobster in abundance. (We do, however, have crawfish rolls.) We also have a dearth of people from Maine to show us how a proper lobster roll is made. Enter the Maine-owned Maine-ly Sandwiches, which offers a full and proper lobster roll...for $18. (Don't worry; you can get a half for $9.) There are other sandwiches on the menu, too, but ­LOBSTER. ­Seriously.

3. Cajun Town Cafe

Don't judge this book by its cover. Cajun Town Cafe may look grim, but it's well known for having some of the best Cajun (and Salvadoran) food in the city. Founded by former ­Pappadeaux employee Moises Marquez, a Salvadoran who worked his way up from busboy to head cook at the chain's location on the South Loop, this is the second location of Cajun Town and one of my favorite spots for gumbo and fried shrimp po-boys.